Written interview with pianist and composer Ellen Rowe – Vinton’s Cove.
Jazz Blues European Union: – Thank you for taking the time to have this interview with Jazz Blues EU. Tell us about your music. When did you start performing?
Ellen Rowe: – I started playing the piano at age 3 and performed with junior high and high school music groups, including jazz piano in jazz ensembles and as a choir accompanist, and flute and bassoon in bands and orchestras. My high school jazz quintet started playing gigs when I was 16 years old.
What do you consider to be your hometown and how does that affect your music?
My hometown is Ridgefield, CT and I guess the fact that it was not diverse at all, mainly white people of European descent meant that I was exposed to a lot of classical, folk and rock music early on and didn’t start hearing Black jazz until I started studying with a private jazz piano teacher who had hung out with Monk and Bud Powell in New York City.
What performers have been your inspiration?
Bill Evans was my first major musical hero, but after that I would say Herbie Hancock and now that I live outside of Detroit, the Detroit pianists like Barry Harris, Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones and Terry Pollard. Two other big influences have been Kenny Wheeler and Joni Mitchell.
What do you find most challenging about being an independent artist in today’s music industry?
I think trying to get gigs at the bigger jazz clubs and festivals when you don’t have a huge name or a large label behind you is the most challenging.
What do you base your success on?
I’ve been lucky to have had wonderful artists to play and record with in the Ann Arbor/Detroit area and some great friends and artists in New York and other places who are willing to come out here and record my music. I have a lovely following of folks here in this area who support me at concerts and have also been lucky to have been able to hire fabulous PR people like Lydia Liebman to help get attention for my music. We are also blessed to have several wonderful Jazz radio stations here in Michigan, including our fabulous local station WEMU. The University of Michigan, where I teach, has also been very supportive of my recording projects and touring.
Can you talk about your experiences collaborating with other artists or musicians? How does it influence your creative process?
My last two releases have featured artists that I have a special connection with who have inspired both my writing and my playing. My “Momentum” octet album featured players like Ingrid Jensen, Allison Miller, Tia Fuller, Marion Hayden, Virginia Mayhew, Lisa Parrott and Melissa Gardiner, all of whom are good friends and remarkable players. When you know you have artists like that to write for the sky is the limit! I also kept their sounds and soloing styles in mind when i wrote the music.
What was your latest musical release?
“Vinton’s Cove” is a quartet album featuring saxophonist Mike Sakash that also includes guest vocalist Sunny Wilkinson. The album release happened Oct. 30 and the official digital/streaming release date is Nov. 21
Do you have any news to share? Could you share the story behind your latest new CD ELLEN ROWE – Vinton’s Cove and what inspired its creation?
Liner Notes – “Vinton’s Cove” Ellen Rowe Quartet featuring Mike Sakash, saxophonist and special guest vocalist Sunny Wilkinson.
Vinton’s Cove is located in Maine, but not the touristy, coastal part of Maine that most people are familiar with. It is located instead on Kezar Lake, a nine-mile-long jewel tucked in halfway up the Maine/New Hampshire border and is the site of our family cabin, built in the mid 1950’s. Several of the pieces on this album were either written there or were inspired by the nature there, including the title track, “The Loons of Vinton’s Cove”, which was written in tribute to the pair of Common Loons that have tried to nest there for the last five years. Unfortunately, their attempts have been unsuccessful so far due to egg-grabbing raccoons. A group of loon experts and enthusiasts known as the “Loon Rangers” build floating raft nests, patrol the lake checking on loon pairs and nests and generally providing advocacy and education for lake residents. This tune is also written in honor of their efforts!
“Refractions” was inspired by the different ways in which light refracts in a prism or in water (thinking about the sunlight on our cove, for example); I tried to explore ways in which a single note can seemingly “refract”, change color or resolve in different directions, depending on its relationship to the given chord at that moment. Mike Sakash’s soprano sax on this is exquisite and captures the mood perfectly. “Clipped In Blues” was written after an embarrassing (and only slightly painful) bike accident that occurred while I was chatting with a neighbor at the end of my driveway but forgot that I still had one foot clipped into the pedals and fell over attempting to dismount. I’ve painted not-so-subtle imagery of the event into the piece. On “The Phoenix” I got to collaborate with my great friend Sunny Wilkinson, extraordinary vocalist, lyricist, educator and potter. She provided wonderful lyrics for the tune and perfectly captured the spirit and energy of the piece in her performance.
Kenny Wheeler is one of my musical heroes. A remarkable trumpeter and flugelhornist, composer and arranger, he was one of the most humble and unassuming people I have ever known. “Kind Folk” is a perfect example of his ability to craft beautiful melodies and chords that make perfect sense but move in unexpected ways. We feature our great bassist Dennis Carroll on this one as well as Mike, this time on alto sax. “Ebb & Flow” is a showcase for drummer Pete Siers who has been with me on all but one of my albums. I am so fortunate that he lives less than two miles away from me! He and his wife Steph helped inspire me to get into long distance running and high-altitude mountaineering (thanks guys!).
I grew up listening to Carole King, Carly Simon, Judy Collins and of course, Joni Mitchell. Reworking songs that are as iconic as “Both Sides Now” can be a dangerous proposition, but this was done with great love and respect, and I’d like to think she would approve if she ever got to hear it. Speaking of iconic tunes, “All The Things You Are” has always been one of my favorite tunes to improvise over, even if the melody itself is not especially inspiring. I have given it a slightly different twist by cleverly (if I do say so myself) reversing the direction of the time-honored Parker/Gillespie intro and allowing that to set the tone for the treatment. “Sylvan Way” is the very first tune that I ever committed to paper and played with others. I actually wrote it at our cabin on Vinton’s Cove and it is the title of my first CD, recorded back in 2001. Once again, Sunny Wilkinson provides lyrics that perfectly capture the mood that I intended. We opted to do this duo to celebrate our great friendship and musical sympatico. We close the album with our arrangement of “I’ll Remember April”. While I provided the treatment of the melody, Dennis provided the nice new set of changes that we improvise over initially.
It would be an understatement to say that the world is not a particularly happy place right now. I hope that the music on this album can provide some balm for wounded souls or at least a brief respite from the stress and chaos of current events.
For CD sleeve pocket: I feel so blessed to have been able to bring this group of wonderful musicians together for this album. Their sensitivity, amazing musicianship and great energy made this a very special project for me. This would not have been possible without the talents of our terrific engineer Ben Lorenz and his invitation to come record at his studio, Willis Sound (with reverb plates in the basement!). His belief in the project has meant the world to me. Chris Goosman did a fabulous job of mastering for us and Ted Chesky provided the great artwork and design layout. The cover photo credit goes to my brother Randy Rowe, who is lucky enough to see Vinton’s Cove every day. The beautiful loon photo was taken by Laura Robinson – artist, photographer and Loon Ranger extraordinaire. Special thanks to the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance for providing financial support for this project. Thanks also to Smokin’ Sleddog Records’ Jamie-Sue Seal, who has been a constant source of support and to Lydia Liebman for her promotional brilliance and professional acumen.
This album is dedicated to the combined Rowe and Vinton clans who have celebrated the beauty of Vinton’s Cove together for over 75 years. And, of course, the loons.
How does your latest album fit into your creative path? Is this a goal you wanted to achieve?
After the octet album I wanted to get back to a smaller band and I particularly wanted to capitalize on my musical relationship with saxophonist Mike Sakash – after we started to play together I knew that I wanted to write some music with his sound in my ear as well as his improvisational style.
How do you approach the process of songwriting, and are there any specific themes or emotions you tend to explore in your music?
I write alot of my music at the piano but often get inspirations for themes or “hooks” while out running or just out in nature. I think that a sense of wistfulness often permeates my music as I spend a lot of time thinking about topics like climate change, the huge loss of species throughout the planet, the current political climate in the U.S. and many other countries, etc. But I try and make sure that those pieces are leavened by more fun, upbeat pieces so that albums and performances don;t just end up depressing people!
As an indie musician, how do you navigate the balance between creative freedom and commercial appeal?
I think I manage to strike a good balance by writing music that is accessible but that has a lot of compositional integrity. Non musicians seem to really enjoy it but musicians enjoy playing it, so that is the best of both worlds.
What role does technology and social media play in promoting your music and connecting with your audience?
I’m not the most technologically savvy person – I have an email list and use Facebook to promote performances but I’ve had to hire people to help get the word out and teach me better business skills.
Could you describe a memorable live performance experience or tour that has had a lasting impact on you and your music?
Playing Kenny Wheeler”s “Sweet Time Suite” with Kenny and a fabulous band at the Banff Center in the early 1990s was an important musical moment for me. Playing with my octet in Detroit for a great audience and also at the Jazz Education Network Conference for a similarly enthusiastic audience have also been really memorable.
In an era of streaming platforms, how do you feel about the changing landscape of music consumption and its impact on independent musicians?
I think indie musicians who have excellent promotion skills and can get lots of (hopefully great) content out on a regular basis are going to do fine, especially those who are savvy enough to combine performances with clinics, educational books, etc.
Musicians often have a close relationship with their fanbase. How do you engage with your fans and build a dedicated community around your music?
I’m working on that! I’m about to retire from my teaching job so that I can spend more time composing and playing and hopefully starting some kind of podcast or maybe even a radio show. I think the first thing that i will do, though, is start some kind of weekly or monthly letter that keeps folks up to date on what I’m up to.
How can fans find you? Lastly, please share some final words with the fans.
My octet album “Momentum” is out on Smokin Sleddog’ Records (https://smokinsleddogrecords.com/) and the new one will be posted on Bandcamp: https://ellenrowe.bandcamp.com/album/vintons-cove.
My website is hopelessly outdated (getting ready for a redo!) but My Facebook page Ellen Rowe Music is more up to date. I so appreciate everyone who has come to concerts or gigs or purchased my music! Your support is incredibly appreciated.
By Olivia Peevas
